Apple recently changed its App Store policies in a move intended to bolster privacy, specifically regarding apps that access user contact databases.
As reported by Bloomberg, Apple is cracking down on a contacts harvesting technique that has been in use for years:
Apple already makes contact sharing an opt-in option for users, but what apps can do with those contacts after they’re accessed has been less restricted until now.
Apple had announced several privacy-focused changes at its WWDC conference this past week, however, what it didn’t emphasize was its updates to the App Store Review Guidelines.
While this is a great move for the future of the App Store, Apple can’t simply go back and retrieve all the information developers already have on users’ friends and family. Users can, however, go into Settings > Privacy > Contacts and turn off future access to contact information for an app.
